"Going
too far is what the Brave New Workshop always has done. But this time has it
gone a step beyond too far?

On
Friday night, the nations oldest comedy/satire theater unveiled Rise
of the Celebretards: A-crotchalypse Now. The production satirizes celebrity
and celebrity worshippers, including the media.

Certainly,
ridiculing the rich, the shallow and the media is worthy work. But advocates
for people with intellectual disabilities wonder how the countrys most
vulnerable population got dragged into this skit.

Heres
the deal: Retarded is a specific condition, and the noun retard
is pejorative.

As
bad as the N word, said Pam Carlson, director of community
relations for Arc of the Greater Twin Cities, which advocates for those with
disabilities.

Thats
not a small group. Carlson said there are 79,000 people in the Twin Cities with
intellectual disabilities. One in 10 families can understand why use of the
word retard is painful.

It
should be noted that Arc was formed as Association for Retarded Citizens but,
because of the connotations of the R word, changed to simply Arc
in 1990.

By
using retard in the title, Carlson said, Brave New Workshop is giving
legitimacy to a word that causes pain. Why do that? she asked. Their
skit has nothing to do with the subject of intellectual disabilities.

The
word celebretard was ripped from the tabloids, according to Erin
Farmer, director of marketing for Brave New Workshop. That it would offend anyone
came as something of a surprise. You never know what will be considered
objectionable, Farmer said.

Well,
sometimes Brave New Workshop has a pretty good idea what will offend. For example,
it has had productions with such titles as Ripped Off the Cross! The Last
Crusade of Bill BJesus.

Not
surprisingly , some Christians werent amused. But Christians, and other
groups pilloried by Brave New Workshop, represent power. Mental disability equals
powerlessness.

Caleb
McEwen, Brave New Workshops artistic director, said he cant be too
concerned about offending. People have the right to be offended and we
have the right to be wrong, McEwen said. If we cant use the
word retard, does that mean we should not use idiot, moron, or crazy,
either? Eventually, we cant say anything.

McEwen
pointed out that the word celebretard is never used in the script.
But that, according to Sherry Gray, is part of the problem.
Gray, a St. Paul women who is guardian for her sister who has intellectual disabilities,
is the person who put a national spotlight on the title. She saw an ad for the
production and posted her thoughts - This is wrong - on an international
website for people who have family members with disabilities. Not surprisingly,
most of the website users share her despair.

Its
the use in the title, with no context, that bothers me, Gray said. Id
like to see them change the title. But if they cant do that, I hope this
can at least be a teachable moment. 